Insulating support means for the current leads of luminous signs



Dec. 18, 1934. H. LANGE 1,984,486

INSULATING SUPPORT MEANS FOR THE CURRENT LEADS OF LUMINOUS SIGNS Filed April 26, 1933 INVENTOR ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 18, 1934 PATENT OFFICE INSULATING SUPPORT MEANS FOR THE CURRENT LEADS F LUMINOUS SIGNS Heinrich Lange, Neuhaus-on-the-Rennweg, Germany, assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Application April 26, 1933, Serial No. 668,067 In Germany May 31, 1932 1 Claim.

The present invention relates to luminous signs generally and more particularly the invention relates to improvements in luminous signs of the type in which the luminous tube shaped in the form of a character is mounted on a hollow box of the same configuration, the side of said box facing the luminous tube having a reflecting surface and the electrode chambers and the current supply wires for the luminous tube housed in the interior of said box member.

In the above types of sign devices the hollow box members are usually made of metal and grounded and the current supply wires are heavily insulated therefrom so that repairs may be safely made and short-circuits avoided. The object of the present invention is to increase the safety factor in such signs. Another object of the invention is to increase the safety factor of current supply leads generally. Still further objects and advantages attaching to the device and to its use and operation will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following particular description.

In accordance with these objects the invention comprises an insulating means surrounding and supporting the current supply wires out of contact with the walls of the metal box member. Said means consists of a multiplicity of short tubes made of insulating material, such as glass, and having a larger inside diameter than the outside diameter of said current supply wires and having outwardly extending flanges on one end thereof. Said tubes are slipped over the current supply wires and are spaced at approxi- 35 mately equal distances along the length of the current supply wires in the interior of said box member. Said insulating tubes permit the bending of said current supply wires to follow the 4 bends in said box member and the flanges on said insulating tube are of suflicient depth to separate the current supply wires from the grounded metal box member so that short circuiting is positively avoided.

In the drawing accompanying and forming part of this specification an embodiment of the invention is illustrated in which Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a length of current supply wire having two insulating and 50 supporting flanged tubes thereon one of said tubes being shown in section,

Fig. 2 is a top elevational view of a luminous sign device, the luminous tube and the top side thereof being removed showing the arrange- 55 ment of the current supply wires and the electrode chambers of the luminous tubes in the box member of said sign, and

Fig. 3 is a sectional view along the line 33 of Fig. 2.

Like numbers denote like parts in all views 5 of the device.

Referring to Fig. 1 of the drawing a plurality of insulating tubes having a neck 3 the inside diameter of which is substantially greater than the outside diameter of the insulated current supl0 ply lead 2 is slipped over said lead 2. Said tubes have a flange 1 at one end of the neck 3 thereof. The tubes 1, 3 are easily positioned on said lead 2 and said lead 2 is easily bent into desired position. An elastic ring 4 made of rubber, for ex- 15 ample, is slipped over said lead 2 and makes a frictional joint therewith to limit the movements of said tubes 1, 3 along said lead 2. Said rings 4 are located between each pair of said tubes 1, 2 or at greater intervals, when desired.

The electrode chambers 8 and part of the container of a luminous tube 6 are shown in position in the interior of box member 5. The top 7 of said box member 5 and the part of the luminous tube 6 have been removed in Fig. 2 to show the arrangement of the current supply wires 2, the protecting means 1, 3 and the electrode chambers 8 of the luminous tube 6 in the interior of said metal box member 5. The insulating protecting means 1, 3 supports the lead 2 out of contact with said metal box 5 to increase the safety factor of the sign. The lead 2 is adapted to be bent to conform approximately in shape to the configuration of the interior of said box member 5. The box member 5 is of U-shape in the illustration but it will be understood, of course, that said box member 5 and the luminous tube 6 mounted thereon are of other shapes as desired.

While I have shown and described and have pointed out in the annexed claim certain novel features of the invention, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its use and operation may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the broad spirit and scope of the invention, for example, the new and novel protecting means is useful on any current lead and is particularly useful on leads carrying high voltage to any type of translating device.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:-

A sign comprising in combination, a hollow housing member of conducting material and of distinctive configuration and having a reflectthan the diameter of said wire, and spacing means interposed between said tubes and frictionally engaging said wire, said spacing means being a resi'lient annular member circular in cross-section, the flared ends of said tubes centering said wire in the curved contour of said HEINRIH*LANGE. 

